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that was the year that was

I feel like I skipped a year and now I am back to visiting the US and various libraries and guestrooms with backpack or travel bag. I missed it. I am freshly back (well not even home yet but holed up in Westport watching it rain) from a long trip to see Jim’s parents outside of Phoenix and a short trip to New York City to give a talk and see some friends.

Highlights included a musical instrument museum, a drive out at night in the desert, a few easy train trips, an AirBnB place that was jessamyn-perfect (sort of unusual), a fun meetup, a great dinner (lentil flour donuts!) and cracking some kids up trying to explain to them what a Jiffy Lube was.

My year-end reading list is also online over at librarian.net as well as links to my talks and some info about the conference that I was at. I started the year with inbox zero but that’s been creeping up not because I’m not on top of things but more because my inbox is my to do list and there are some things that need to stay on that list until I get all the way home. There is probably a better way to manage this than I am currently managing it.

The word for the early part of this year is hygge (one of those non-translateable ones, read up on it, you’ll be glad you did). “You know, the thing you have to understand about the Danes is that we believe that when you’re moving, your soul doesn’t catch up with you until you stop for half an hour.” and hygge is about that slow down and catch up part.

What do you think?

Comment

  1. Thank you for “hygge.” My yoga teacher’s attitude towards especially the time right leading up to the solstice made me be more intentional about hibernating, napping, taking baths, etc. And I think I was kind of instinctively gravitating toward candles and companionship but will in future be more intentional about that also. I love the sentence you quote.